Plans for a real-time weather station on the summit of Snowdon have been approved by national park planning chiefs.

The development, to be placed on the roof of the Hafod Eryri cafe, will provide up to the minute weather information for the estimated 500,000 walkers who reach Wales’ highest peak every year.

In addition, the 1.8 metre structure will also provide air temperature, wind and wind chill factor readings, with hopes that it could cut the number of rescues carried out by mountain rescue and other agencies.

A meeting of the Snowdonia National Park Authority’s planning committee at Plas Tan y Bwlch unanimously approved the plans this morning.

The report noted: “It is considered that this proposal is compatible with the functions of this authority in providing visitors with up to date and accurate weather condition reports from the summit of Yr Wyddfa .

“It is further considered that the design and form of the installation, albeit standing 1.855m above the roof, will not look incongruous at this setting.”

The proposed weather station on Snowdon

Once installed, the monitoring equipment will be able to provide the data through a web-based interface to help walkers make good decisions about where, when and if to venture out.

The station has also been designed to have no direct contact with the roof of Hafod Eryri and to mitigate against the risk of lightning strike.

A spokesperson for Visit Wales, which submitted the bid in conjunction with the Snowdonia National Park authority and Natural Resources Wales, said: “Visit Wales’s Year of Adventure was a well-received promotional drive, encouraging members of the public to visit the outdoor in Wales and experience the adventure it has to offer.

“However, there were concerns raised by the police and rescue services that these promotional activities are contributing to an increase in incidents on the mountain.

“To help combat this, Visit Wales have funded a national safety project to help educate visitors and help them be prepared for the environment they are visiting.

“It has around half a million visitors each year scaling its peak and subsequently one of the busiest mountain rescue teams in the UK, with an average of 150-200 incidents annually between 2007-2012.

“One of the major factors that lead to rescue situations on the mountains of Snowdonia is poor weather with recent research showing that wet weather and poor visibility are the major contributors with wind and ice and snow also being contributing factors.”